Chapter 61: Five Elements Spirit Stones and the Conversation with the Deer Demon

"Installments?" The Crane Demon paused, seemingly a bit confused.

"How about this? Every month, I will supply you with ten dragon loaches until the total of five hundred is paid off," Mo Fan said with a grin. "After all, as you know, this stuff is very hard to come by!"

"Ten is far too few. Fifty a month, or there is no point in discussing this!"

"This is being used to buy your life and your future. Do you really think it's not worth it?"

The Crane Demon flashed a brilliant smile, leaning against the edge of her nest with her legs crossed, inadvertently displaying her long, slender legs completely to Mo Fan.

Mo Fan did not answer immediately. After pondering for a long time, he said in a deep voice, "Deal!"

Hearing this, a look of satisfaction appeared on the Crane Demon's face.

"You're Laibao, right?"

"You are an ambitious fellow, and you've successfully made me remember you!"

"However, if you want to replace that Scorpion Demon, my word alone is not enough. You also need to gain the approval of that fellow Lu Tantan!" Crane Feifei said with a smile.

"I understand, there's no need for Commander Crane to worry about that!"

Mo Fan grinned, revealing two rows of white teeth, and then cupped his fists. "In that case, I will take my leave. I still need to visit Commander Lu next."

"Go on, you interesting little fellow!"

"The remaining forty dragon loaches for this month will be given to you in half a month!"

With that, Mo Fan turned and left.

After he completely departed the Crane Demon's cave dwelling, the Crane Demon summoned two lesser demons—a chicken and a duck—and instructed them, "Go and find out for this mistress what the background of this newly promoted Commander Laibao actually is!"

"And remember, do not meddle in things that are none of your business!"

"Yes, Madam!"

...

Mo Fan was unaware that the Crane Demon was investigating him, but even if he knew, he wouldn't have cared.

After leaving the Crane Demon's cave, he headed toward the Deer Demon's dwelling.

Both the Deer Demon and the Crane Demon were personal attendant commanders of the Third General, so their caves were not far apart, located on the very same peak.

The entrance to the Deer Demon's cave was also guarded by two lesser demons, both of the same deer lineage.

These two little deer demons did not make things difficult for him. Upon learning that Mo Fan was a fellow commander and hearing the purpose of his visit, they became courteous and polite, quickly rushing off to announce his arrival.

"Hahaha! I was wondering who it was, if not Brother Laibao!"

"I have heard of your great name for a long time, truly a long time!!"

Before Mo Fan had waited long, he saw a tall, thin youth walk out of the cave dwelling, greeting him with an enthusiastic expression.

"???"

A flurry of question marks popped up in Mo Fan's mind. He thought to himself, *Have I ever met this guy? Is there any need to be this enthusiastic?*

The youth was currently dressed in a grey robe with slender, narrow eyes that carried a hint of a charming yet eerie vibe. He immediately grabbed Mo Fan's hand and pulled him straight into the cave dwelling, asking along the way, "I wonder which general Brother Laibao serves under?"

"..."

Mo Fan was speechless, thinking, *Didn't you just say you've heard of my great name for a long time? It turns out you have no idea who I am at all!*

As for the name Laibao, it was simply the name Mo Fan had given upon his arrival earlier.

"Does Commander Lu not recognize me?" Mo Fan asked with a smile that didn't reach his eyes.

"I've heard a thing or two, but that doesn't matter. Since you're here, you must be asking a favor of your big brother. As long as you bring enough gifts, none of those matters will be an issue at all!"

Lu Tantan chuckled heartily, appearing extremely warm and welcoming.

As soon as he welcomed Mo Fan into the room, he ordered his subordinate lesser demons to pour wine.

However, Mo Fan had picked up on something from those words. This fellow hadn't heard of him at all; he clearly viewed him as a walking cash cow!

Mo Fan did not speak in haste. Instead, his gaze fell upon several glowing stones in the room, a flash of surprise crossing his eyes.

Because those few stones were unambiguously spirit stones!

He still had over a hundred such spirit stones stored in his internal space right now!

"What? Do you recognize these stones?" Lu Tantan's gaze flickered when he saw this, and he asked eagerly, "Or have you seen them before?"

"Before I answer your question, can you tell me what they are?" Mo Fan turned to look at Lu Tantan.

"It seems you really have seen them..." Lu Tantan's eyes narrowed slightly, and then he chuckled. "If you have stones like these on you, hand them over to me, and I will definitely help you out with your request!"

"Commander Lu, you haven't answered my question yet," Mo Fan asked once more.

Lu Tantan curled his lip, gave a flick of his hand, and a milky-white stone flew into his palm before he slowly spoke, "It's no big deal to tell you. This thing is called a spirit stone. It doesn't actually have much use for us demons, but human cultivators are very fond of it."

"Look, it even glows. Isn't it pretty?"

Spirit stones...

Hearing this, Mo Fan's expression didn't change much, but inwardly he was astonished. *So this thing really is a spirit stone!*

"Since it's a spirit stone, it must contain spiritual energy within it. Why did you say it has no great use for us demons?" Mo Fan asked again.

"That's a good question!"

Lu Tantan's eyes lit up. He increasingly believed that the little fellow in front of him must have seen such spirit stones before, so he didn't find the other party's questioning annoying. After pondering for a moment, he said, "I can't say it's completely useless. Do you know that spirit stones are divided into many kinds?"

"Many kinds?" Mo Fan was stunned, not quite understanding.

"Yeah. Spiritual energy isn't just the kind we usually cultivate. In the true sense, it is divided into the Five Elements of Heaven and Earth, and spirit stones are naturally the same," Lu Tantan said matter-of-factly.

"The Five Elements of Heaven and Earth... Do you mean metal, wood, water, fire, and earth?"

Mo Fan thought for a moment and looked at Lu Tantan.

"Eh... Are you really a newly promoted commander? You even know this?"

Lu Tantan looked at Mo Fan in some surprise, then nodded. "What you said is indeed very correct. So someone as smart as you should understand what I meant by my previous words, right?"

Hearing this, Mo Fan was silent for a moment before speaking. "If spiritual energy is divided into the Five Elements of Heaven and Earth, then the spiritual energy needed by us demons should belong to a relatively milder type. The most common type is wood-attribute spiritual energy, and the spiritual herbs and fruits of heaven and earth happen to belong to wood-attribute spiritual energy.

By what you said just now, you simply meant that there are spirit stones of other attributes, such as fire-attribute?

The spiritual energy in these types of spirit stones is relatively more violent compared to wood and water types, so they are not suitable for absorption by us demons?"

"Tsk tsk... You really are smart enough. I'm starting to wonder which general's command you actually came from!" Lu Tantan stared at Mo Fan in amazement, his eyes somewhat gleaming.

Hearing this fellow's words, Mo Fan understood in his heart, realizing his deduction was correct.

*So that's how it is?*

Mo Fan muttered inwardly. Actually, finding out this answer wasn't difficult. He had once heard Dali mention that demons cannot cultivate during the day—or more accurately, they cannot absorb the power of the sun's essence, which would cause demons to be burned to death by heavenly fire. This showed that demons are quite resistant to relatively violent energies, and perhaps even incapable of absorbing them!

Secondly, among the demons Mo Fan had contact with, he found that most of them became spirits by consuming spiritual objects like spiritual herbs or spiritual fruits. Even when handing over tributes, "spiritual herbs" was used as a collective term. This alone was enough to explain everything.

"Thank you for telling me this information. It has benefited me a lot, so I'll be straight with you!"

A smile suddenly appeared on Mo Fan's face as he looked at Lu Tantan and said, "I was a demon under the command of the Scorpion Demon Heizi, but now he has vanished, and I have just broken through to the Commander realm. Therefore, I wish to gain your approval, Commander Lu!"

"So that's how it is..." Lu Tantan nodded upon hearing this, then frowned and asked, "Did that poisonous scorpion vanish, or is he gone?"

"Aren't those the same thing?" Mo Fan's eyes narrowed slightly.

"Are you mocking this commander?" Lu Tantan's expression suddenly turned cold, his gaze fixing icily on Mo Fan. "Are those the same thing?"

Mo Fan was startled, not expecting this deer demon to suddenly change his expression. However, he didn't fly into a rage because of it; instead, he calmly asked in return, "They can be the same thing, can't they?"

"Hahaha... You really are interesting!"

Lu Tantan, who had just looked gloomy, burst into laughter again. He tapped his index finger on the tabletop, making a *thump-thump* sound, and smiled. "Of course they can be the same thing. But even among our own people, gifts cannot be omitted. It all depends on how much sincerity you can bring out!"

Hearing these words, Mo Fan instantly smiled as well.

He knew that this hurdle with the Deer Demon had been successfully cleared!